News
Spam Growing in Europe: Report
EU report says that 50-80 percent of all e-mails are junk e-mails, with much of it coming from outside the EU nations.
- By The Associated Press
- November 27, 2006
(Brussels, Belgium) Unsolicited e-mails continue to plague Europeans
and account for between 50 and 80 percent of all messages sent to mail
inboxes, the European Commission said Monday.
EU Media Commissioner Viviane Reding called on EU governments to step
up their fight against spam, spyware and other illegal online activities
and implement EU rules to improve Internet safety.
An EU report found that only two EU nations -- the Netherlands and Finland
-- were making inroads in enforcing the 2002 law to crack down on spam.
"Spam is still ... making up to between 50 and 80 percent of the
mails that we are receiving in Europe and two-thirds of that is coming
from outside the European Union," said EU spokesman Martin Selmayr.
Selmayr said Dutch authorities were able to reduce spam by 85 percent
by using fines to get businesses to fall in line with the EU rule.
The Dutch telecommunications watchdog OPTA slapped euro60,000 (US$78,500)
in fines on three companies late last year for sending spam, and the Commission
wants other governments to act as well, Reding said.
"I'd like to see other countries achieving similar results through
more efficient enforcement," she said in a statement.
EU officials have said they will put forward new legislation next year
to make it easier to prosecute spammers.
Monday's EU report said spam cost euro39 billion (US$51.1 billion) worldwide
last year, according to San Francisco-based Ferris Research Institute.
Selmayr said the biggest culprit of spam remains the United States, which
accounts for 21.6 percent of spam coming into the 25-nation EU. China
is the second-biggest producer with 13.4 percent, while EU member France
is third with 6.3 percent.